New Recoil Pad Worth the $$$

T

TheKlawMan

Moderator
Several posters having given me a lot of help on different threads and in PMs concerning some pretty nasty problems I was experiencing with recoil, I wanted to let you know (as well as other new shooters with the same problem) that I am doing much better now. (I was really badly beaten up before.)

The reasons for the improvement seem to be that I am holding my 870 better (but still not quire right) and I invested $20 in a Remington SuperCell Recoil Pad. The stock pad is probably fine if you know what you are doing, but the new pad really helped and by cutting down felt recoil I am more likely to hold the 870 firmly against by shoulder. Anyway I wanted to let you know that your advice helped and is helping.

You guys also talked about the effect of adding weight to reduce felt recoil. A guy allowed me to heft his new Citori yesterday and it was certainly different from a short barrel sythetic 870. ( He told me to shoot it but I didn't want to mess with his almost new gun.)
 
I'm glad to hear you're coming along............... have you tried the relatively new low/reduced/managed recoil shotshell ammo/loads ?

Winchester Winlite, Remington Managed-Recoil STS, & Federal Premium Vital-Shok are but three available from various sources, like MidwayUSA, etc.

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So far I have shot a few boxes of the Winchester AA low recoil low noise 24 gram stuff. I don't know if I noticed much difference with the old pad, since I also shot some regular 1-18 oz Federals from WalMart, but they were pretty soft with the new pad. In fact, the new pad is working out so well I may not reload my own IF I CAN get a supply of cheap Federal 1 oz 2-3/4 Equivalent stuff from WalMart. Instead of putting the money into reloadingn equipment, I am looking to pick up a long barrel.
 
for stock weight in the 870, I've added modeling clay around the head bolt. It is solid weight that doesn't move or create lead dust ( I have a problem with adding lead to the stock).
 
Adding weight to light guns that get shot a lot is ALWAYS a good idea - just try to add it in such a way as to attain some form of balance that works for you - too much in the rear and the barrel can feel "whippy", too much in the barrel only area, and it can feel really ponderous trying to move the gun to the birds
 
At the tactical shotgun class I recently took the instructor showed us how to push away from your shoulder with your left hand (right-handed shooter) to reduce recoil and recover faster for the next shot. It seemed to help, I fired 150+ shots from my 870 Wingmaster 12-gauge that day and didn't have much if any soreness afterward. Also, I replaced the 40 year old hard rubber pad with a LimbSaver pad a couple of months ago.
 
Glad to hear you're coming along ...

Pushing a gun away from your shoulder ....is a really bad fundamental idea ...and will lead to " a lot of misses " .... How or why any certified instructor would recommend that - is beyond me.

Based on what I read - at least 60% of the recoil from a shotgun is absorbed in the wrist - as you fire the gun. Personally, I demonstrate that with new shooters - showing them, shooting a shotgun one handed is easy to do ( it won't knock them over ...) is the point I'm trying to make. But pushing the gun away from your shoulder / or face ....is a poor idea, in my opinion and experience.
 
Perhaps I should have been clearer... with your right hand, you pull the gun in, with your left, push it away. If you think about it, once it's against your shoulder, there's really no point pulling it tighter because it only tends to increase the impact of recoil. I think his recommendation makes perfect sense from a physics-oriented point of view, and saw some benefit from doing this in practice.
 
Nope, sorry ....we still disagree....

pulling a gun tighter into your shoulder isn't going to increase the recoil. Recoil is a function of the weight of the gun, the amount of shot in the payload, and the velocity of the shell....

Holding the gun tighter against your shoulder won't increase the recoil. If you contact your shoulder loosely ---it will "slap" you .. and that isn't good either. But "Firm" or "firmer" -- in my mind, won't incrrease or change anything ... If you grip the "handgrip" area of the gun a little tighter - and still contact your shoulder firmly .....it will help you a little ...with the concept being to "hang onto the gun tightly" ...not squeeze the life out of it ..

My opinion is your instructor was trying to come up with something that compensated for "poorly fit" shotguns .../so shooters didn't feel like they were getting beat up ...especially if they weren't leaning into the guns properly ... ( but if it worked for you - ok ) ....
 
Hmm... well, if I had to catch a 50 lb bag of sand dropped from above, I think it would be tougher if I already had another in my arms, but maybe that's not a perfect analogy.
 
BigJim and spacecoast. Are you comparing apples to oranges? The instructor was teaching a "tactical" shotgun class and in firing heavier loads in a tactical situation is accuracy as important as it would be in shooting clays or hunting? I am guessing that spacecoast that in a tactical situation you only burn 10 or 20 shells of buck instead of hundreds of rounds of target loads for practice.
 
The discussion and practice centered around putting shots on target quickly, hence the need to mitigate recoil in order to bring the gun back on target after a shot. You're absolutely correct that we were shooting a lot of buckshot and slugs from 20 yards or less at man-size targets rather than clays, so precision was not the highest priority (not that it didn't matter at all though).
 
The Pachmayer slip on recoil pad did wonders for me when I was younger and smaller. Good form and a good pad will go a long way.
 
You are right about good form, Delaware Dan, and I am still working on that. Today I discovered by elevating my regular varifocal glasses that I had been mounting the gun so that it was shooting way high. There was a lot of barrel showing that was out of focus before.
 
I can't shoot with bifocals, my shooting glasses are just the top prescription and tinted.

If you're seeing all the rib, it's likely you're impacting high.
 
If you want to mitigate recoil, pull the stock in tight - if it allows to freely hit you, the pain will be more because of the hit instead of a push
 
I don't think the fundamentals of mounting and executing a shot are much different on tactical shotguns ...but I'll defer to you guys that have more experience with tactical shotguns than I do.

When I've fired shotguns in tactical training .....I've use the same principles on a firm shoulder mount / firm grip on the gun ...and I've never had a problem ( but at 6'5" and 290 lbs I'm a little bigger than the average buffalo ) .../ so if you like the concept he's suggesting, all I can say is give it a try ....cycling a pump gun / with 3 successive shots on target ...and see what you think works the best for you. But in my experience even light loads, thru a gun that doesn't fit, will smack you around ...
 
What you want to do is have a decent grip on the fore-end. With a relaxed grip, common to new shooters with pump guns, the recoil forces normally resolved by your left hand go to your right hand, face, and shoulder. What you are after is to absorb the recoil over the greatest contact area possible for the longest time. Let your whole body roll with the recoil instead of having your shoulder/face take it as quick punch (resulting from a relaxed grip). Your arms are for more than just supporting the gun, they are both natural shock absorbers. But, like in your car, loose shock absorbers are worthless.
 
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